MEMBERS NEWS

CHAIRMAN’S MESSAGE

How and where will we be travelling in 2061? It was a question much in our minds as the Guild ended its 50th anniversary year and sealed a time capsule, to be opening in another half century. Within weeks we were asking more immediate questions. As we gathered in Oman for our AGM the Egyptian revolution reached the boil. The Arab world was plunged into a sea of troubles, leading us to wonder how the region would look in one year, never mind fifty. The meeting was a major success, allowing many of us brief glimpses of Omani life and landscape on subsequent tours.

The next sea of troubles was of a purely metaphorical nature, at Stratford, where a Guild group heard Hamlet ponder whether he should take arms against it. They enjoyed an evening performance by Young People's Shakespeare at the Swan Theatre – and stayed that night at the half timbered Stratford Mercure – after a day at the Best of Britain and Ireland Show, the domestic tourism showcase at Birmingham's NEC. En route for the exhibition members shared a Virgin Trains carriage with Tourism Minister John Penrose.

Sandwiched between these two events came our annual Yearbook launch, held within sprinting distance of a Number 11 bus, built in 1963, which is almost as old as the Guild. (If you haven't got a copy yet there are details on the website of how to do so). The superb setting for the launch was the London Transport Museum in Covent Garden. The Turkish office of Tourism and Culture provided wine and canapés and the backdrop included a mock up of the new “Boris” bus, which will enter service in 2012. Will that still be around in 2061?

Meanwhile check our website (www.bgtw.org) for future events, including this years Awards Dinner on 6^th November – again at the Savoy

Roger Bray, BGTW chairman

TRAVEL NEWS UPDATES FROM GUILD MEMBERS

PUERTO RICO and CAIRO
Judith Baker is travelling to Puerto Rico on 28th March on BA's inaugural flight there and will be spending a few days exploring the destination and its surrounding islands. On her return she will head to Cairo to see how tourism is faring in the city after recent troubles

Contact: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it ; Tel: 0208 995 1266; 07939 220972

ALL IN THE NAME OF LOVE (or something)
Melissa Shales is on the move. She's selling her flat in London and moving up to the Colchester area from the end of April with her partner. It may take a little bit of time before she's settled into a permanent new home. Meantime, her mobile and email will continue work as normal and she will still be within easy commuting distance of London for events. She will be attending Indaba in South Africa in May if anyone needs coverage.

Contact: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it ; Tel: 07798 745473.

DABBLING IN DUBAI
After being firmly entrenched in his homeland Canary Islands writing features for The Telegraph, Ryanair Magazine, Monarch Explorer and Responsible Travel, award-winning travel writer Joe Cawley will be dabbling in Dubai in May, the Ribble Valley in June and Florida in July. Extra commissions gladly accepted.

Contact: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it ; www.joecawley.co.uk

ISRAEL & PALESTINE, MALTA & CRETE - AND SUMMER WITH TEENAGERS
Juliet Rix is currently planning a trip to Israel and Palestinian territories in April and Cretan archaeology in May. Hoping also to cover the Isle of Man and always happy to write about Malta (having recently completed the most comprehensive guide to the islands in English) and the UK. Hope to do something over the summer about travel/holidays with (interested) teenagers.

Contact: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

CHANGING TRAVEL WITH A BRUSH AND PEN
Patricia Aithie, photographer and writer is also a travel painter. With over 25 years experience of living, working and travelling in the Middle and Far East she is looking for commissions to paint and teach painting, including tour guiding or illustrations for books and catalogues. Experienced in drawing, in pencil, charcoal and ink she is available for interesting illustrations for publication.

Contact: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it ; Tel: 0292 0236879

HUSKIES, HADRIAN AND HONITON
Three days after leaving the warm sunshine of Oman, Gillian Thornton piled on the layers and flew to Lapland to experience snowmobiling, husky driving and outdoor Jacuzzis beneath the Northern Lights. March brought Hadrian's Wall, Newcastle and Carlisle, followed by the Devon coast and countryside near Honiton. April sees her back in France exploring the Vosges around Gerardmer, with trips planned to Corsica, the Loire Valley, Picardy and the Auvergne. Need copy or pictures?

Contact: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it ; Tel: 01582 468771

ON THE ROAD AGAIN
Mike Gerrard will be driving the Pacific Coast Highway again in May, to gather material and shoot video for his www.Pacific-Coast-Highway-Travel.com website. The drive will be across Arizona, staying at Joshua Tree National Park, then through San Diego, Los Angeles, and finally spending several days in and around San Francisco to attend the Pow Wow travel jamboree. He is also updating guides to Amsterdam, Santorini, Reims, Paris, Bordeaux, and Rhodes & Kos over the next few months.

Contact: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

ARE TRAINS BETTER THAN PLANES FOR EUROPEAN SHORTHAUL?
Peter Lynch is busy writing the 2ed edition of his book Wildlife & Conservation Volunteering and welcomes overview commissions or in-depth features. But he’s still found time to check out the pros and cons of European rail travel with recent train journeys to Paris, Cologne, Madrid, Nice, Prague, Reims and Venice. He has also been exploring opportunities for hiking, cycling and catching the bus along Hadrian’s Wall to tie in with the new Hollywood release – The Eagle.

Contact: peter.lynch37@ntlworld; Tel: 0118 9616402

MALDIVES & CAYMANS
Author and diving guru Tim Ecott has just returned from Maldives where he cruised on a luxury live-aboard diving boat and dived for the first time with his children (aged 10 & 15).

Within a week he was off to the three Cayman Islands researching an in depth guide to the islands - and can offer write-ups on the destination; restaurants, attractions (above and below water) as well as the differing characters of the three islands - one of Britain’s few remaining overseas territories.

Contact: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it ; Tel: 01844 292900

CRUISING AND CANADA
Amy Watkins will be covering new ships Carnival Magic and Oceania’s Marina in the Med this spring and has two trips lined up to Canada. One is an action-packed Yukon adventure; kayaking, heli-hiking and riding with huskies and the other is a beautiful train ride through the Rockies from Vancouver to Calgary. The Holburne Art Museum is reopening in Bath this May and I am available for commissions about my hometown hooked on this news event.

Contact: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

A TIMELY GUIDE TO BRITAIN’S NEWEST NATIONAL PARK
Tim Locke's latest book Slow Sussex & the South Downs National Park comes out in April, just after the opening of the South Downs National Park. Bradt guide is part of the successful Slow series, which takes a sustainable, low-carbon, eco-friendly look at favourite spots in the area, and is full of stories and insights that have never before been in print; Tim is based in Sussex. No charges have been made for inclusion in the guide.

Contact: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it ; Tel: 01273 475381; www.timlocke.co.uk/slowsussex.html

CIRCUMNAVIGATION RECORD BID
On April 4th, construction begins on an advanced wave-piercing superboat, which this autumn will attempt to smash the 61-day powerboat record for circumnavigating the world. Led by ocean adventurer Alan Priddy, the crew includes Guild member Clive Tully, also with Priddy on all the world record attempts on board Spirit of Cardiff 1999-2003. Clive's role on board will include blog updates and shooting web/broadcast video. Features on the project, and background including Clive Tully's previous round the world adventures available.

Contact: www.clivetully.com

ROLY’S ISLAND-HOPPING ROUNDABOUT
Roly Smith has just finished writing Heritage Landscapes – a guide to Britain’s Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty, and is about to start revising his best-selling National Parks of Britain for a second edition, both for AA Publishing. He’ll be taking a Mallorcan farmhouse holiday with his grand children in April, then it’s off to Jersey to cover the famous 48-miles-in-24-hours Itex charity walk around the island of Jersey in June. Back on home ground, he’s just completed writing guides to Dovedale and on the unique Peak District custom of well-dressing for Ashbourne Editions.

Contact: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it ; Tel/Fax: 01629 812034

IT RAINS IN THE RAINFOREST
Mari Nicholson was in Thailand for six weeks, taking in the National Parks of Khao Yai, Khao Sok and Kaeng Kacharn as well as Bangkok, Pattaya, Hua Hin and the islands of Koh Samui and Phuket. Khao Sok was a shock - hot and unbelievably humid - and it rained all the time. Koh Samui on my first visit in 15 years was also a shock: the road around the island is one long ribbon development of shops, massage parlours, restaurants and bars, but it's a fun place for young people and gave me great article ideas.

Contact: www.marinicholson.com; Tel: 01983 402163

HOME AND AWAY
Helen Ochyra, specialist in UK, US and Australian travel is currently updating the Michelin Green Guide to London (her hometown) for publication in early 2012. She will be getting married on May 1st and will subsequently be travelling around the southern states of the USA throughout May including Florida, New Orleans, Nashville, Memphis and Charleston.

SWANSEA ON THE MAP (at last!)
April sees the publication of Welsh Guild member Victoria Trott's Thomas Cook Pocketguide Swansea; it's the first guidebook specifically on her home city by a major guidebook publisher. In February she was in Lyon, France checking out hotels and restaurants for a new family guidebook by Dorling Kindersley and in May she'll be enjoying some yoga and detoxing in Le Marche, Italy.

Contact: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it ; Tel: 07989 987867; www.victoriatrott.com

CYPRUS, JORDAN… AND TOP TIPPING TIPS
Carole French is fresh back from Jordan, Thailand and Dubai where she immersed herself in the fabulously varied cultures for upcoming projects. She’s now back dividing her time between homes in Cyprus, from where she is busily updating several mainstream guides to the island, and her native Essex. Carole is also busy promoting her latest books: DK Top 10 Greek Islands, DK Top 10 Corfu, National Geographic’s Traveler Morocco and Bradt’s Tips on Tipping.

Contact: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it ; www.carolefrench.com

COLOMBIA ALL AROUND, WITH A DASH OF NORWAY
Anna Maria Espsäter has recently completing the Colombia section of the South American Handbook, the guidebook published annually by Footprint, Anna Maria is also doing the Colombia Handbook for the same publisher, after spending Jan-Feb travelling around the country. Her Berlitz Pocket Guide to Norway is being published this spring.

Contact: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

ITALIANISSIMO
Jan Fuscoe is an Italophile, writing extensively on Naples, the Amalfi Coast, and Genoa (and Sardinia from 2011). Previous commissions includes Thomas Cook's guide to Genoa 2011 and Time Out’s Naples 2010 (co-edited with Jeffrey Kennedy), as well as features and guides on London, spas, bars and restaurants. In 2010 Jan was elected Naples & Amalfi Coast expert for the SimonSeeks travel website (www.simonseeks.com).

Contact: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

RAJASTHAN FORTS, ROMAN RUINS AND AN OLYMPIC CHALLENGE!
In March, Kathryn Miller will be exploring north-west India on her first trip to the country. Travelling by train, Kathryn will spend time in Mumbai, Jodhpur, Jaisalmer, Jaipur and Delhi. From mid-April until early May, Kathryn will be backpacking in western Turkey, visiting Istanbul, the Med coast and Cappadocia. Between trips, Kathryn will be the first journalist in the world to use the 2012 Olympics slalom canoe course at Lee Valley, Herts.

For commissions or photographs: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it ; Tel: 07958 396 341

AROUND EUROPE BY RAIL
The new edition of Thomas Cook’s Europe by Rail, published in March 2011, is a major rewrite of a long-established book. Find out more at www.europebyrail.eu. Nicky Gardner’s 700 page book showcases 50 of Europe’s finest rail journeys including many new routes researched and written by Nicky herself. Nicky is available for rail-travel related commissions.

Contact: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it . Rail matters apart, Nicky is also editor of Hidden Europe magazine (www.hiddeneurope.co.uk).

LAKE DISTRICT EXPERTISE
David Atkinson, author of the Footprint guide Cumbria with Kids, is spending spring in the Lake District having been appointed Lakes Expert for Simonseeks (www.simonseeks.com/users/david-atkinson/8499); email for PR opportunities. In addition, early summer commissions include Croatia for Wanderlust magazine, Switzerland for the Daily Mail and Northern Ireland for the Sunday Telegraph.

More from www.atkinsondavid.co.uk; follow David's blog, Hit the North, for more on Northwest England: http://nowhitthenorth.wordpress.com.

FROM MICHELIN STARS TO BAVARIA'S HIDDEN TALENT
Starting with chic Eurovision host city Düsseldorf, Neville Walker is on the road through southern and western Germany, with an itinerary that takes him from the big-city buzz of Munich, Frankfurt and Cologne to the fine wines, dining and boutique hotels of the Pfalz and Franconia and the historic and scenic splendours of Bavaria, including many of its lesser-known gems. Neville is co-author of the Rough Guide to Germany and of Dorling Kindersleys' 'Back Roads Germany', published in March 2011.

Contact: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

HAVE WORDS, WILL TRAVEL
Alan Wright has just returned from a record breaking 50,000 miles of travelling on the speaking circuit in under two months. Speaking on P&O's Ventura in the Caribbean, followed by a speaking tour of Australia in conjunction with England cricket, then back to the Caribbean for Saga Pearl 2. He has good tales to tell, including a new take on Cuba, the joys of Sydney and the magic of Tasmania, including the amazing new Saffire Hotel. For more see www.afterdinnerspeakeralanwright.co.uk

Contact: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it ; Tel: 07772 674 784

FOCUS ON FLORIDA
US-based member Simon Veness will become a full-time Florida resident this summer after splitting his time between the Sunshine State and Michigan in recent years. With Florida again on an upswing with British visitors, it is an ideal time to look at features both familiar (Orlando, Disney and Co) and new (Mount Dora, St Petersburg, Legoland Florida, and more). The cruising world continues to be a major growth industry in these parts, with more ships than ever before being based in Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Port Canaveral and Tampa this coming winter, and Simon will be perfectly placed to cover this continuing story of travel's ocean-going horizons!

Contact: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

SYRIA, POITOU-CHARENTES, COBURG
Jenny Woolf is just back from 2 weeks in Syria. Have visited Damascus, Palmyra, Maaloula and Aleppo. She’s then off in April to Poitou-Charentes region, visiting Poitiers, Futuroscope. Will be visiting Coburg area of Bavaria in May. Expert on Suffolk, Dorset, Surrey. Sample articles on www.jennywoolftravel.blogspot.com - click on the links on the right.

Contact: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it ; Tel: 020 7624 2512

BACK TO THE USA
Mary Moore Mason is soon to head back across the Big Pond on travel research/writing trips to Boston, Minneapolis, South Dakota, San Francisco and Los Angeles. While there, she will be attending the annual Pow Wow convention sponsored by the American travel industry. She has recently had a piece published on Oman with features scheduled to appear next month on California, Kansas and Oklahoma.

Contact: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

NAMIBIA’S SKELETON COAST
After five-and-a-half great years – and against all sane advice – Emma Thomson is leaving her post as commissioning editor at Bradt Travel Guides to join an expedition trekking along Namibia's Skeleton Coast. It's being led by RGS fellow and explorer Mikael Strandberg and being filmed for television by National Geographic cameraman Andrew Miles. She’ll be walking for two charities: Just a Drop (www.justadrop.org) and Serian UK (www.serianuk.org.uk). Donations gratefully received: www.justgiving.com/skeletoncoast2011. She’ll be entering the scary domain of freelancing on her return. From 15 April 2011 onwards,

Contact: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it ; Tel: 07771 921921; twitter: emmasthomson.

EUROPEAN CITY BREAKS AND EGYPTIAN SUNSHINE
Stuart Forster has written features on Sharm El Sheikh, Edinburgh, Hamburg and Antwerp in the first quarter of 2011. Covering leading attractions, food & drink, environmental issues, culture and water sports, Stuart can offer editors refreshing personal insights plus well-researched background information. He can be contacted to undertake feature and guidebook commissions. A fluent German speaker, Stuart is currently learning Portuguse and can be found in Lisbon during April.

Contact: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it ; Tel:0191 645 0885; m: 351 932 756 107

PROVENCE AND LANGUEDOC
Mary Novakovich will be updating the Frommer's guidebook to Provence this spring and will be spending a considerable amount of time in western Provence and Languedoc-Roussillon. If anyone wants travel/food articles, hotel reviews or city guides on destinations in both regions – e.g. Aix-en-Provence, Marseille, Avignon, Luberon, Montpellier, Perpignan, Carcassonne, Narbonne.

Contact: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it ; Tel: 07721 773305

LATIN AWARD
Mike Unwin has just returned from researching his forthcoming Bradt Travel Guide to Swaziland. Due out in 2012, this will be the first guidebook to the country from a UK publisher. Further travel plans include a family cottage in Northumberland (Easter); a houseboat in the Peruvian Amazon (May); bears and belugas in Hudson Bay (July); and wildlife-watching in Kakadu, Australia (September). Meanwhile Mike's columns continue in BBC Wildlife (‘Worldwide Highlights’) and The Independent (‘Where the Weird Things Are’). In March he received the LATA travel writer of the year award 2010.

Contact: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

KHANJARS, COCONUTS AND CRICKET
Alan Hart flew to the Guild's AGM in Oman in January, where he explored the capital, Muscat, and the ancient cities of the south. In February he cruised round the Hawaiian Islands on Cunard's Queen Victoria and in March he visited Sri Lanka during the Cricket World Cup. He welcomes additional commissions.

Contact: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it ; Tel: 01625-872746; 07747-047063

TRAVEL PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR AT THE ROYAL GEOGRAPHICAL SOCIETY (WITH IBG)
Chris Coe, founder of the international Travel Photographer of the Year awards, has signed a five-year agreement for the Royal Geographical Society (with IBG) to host annual TPOTY exhibitions in London. The first exhibition (May 6th - June 10th) is supported by three days of photography and travel events at the Society, with speakers including Alexander Maitland, Hugh Thompson, film director Nick Livesey, BBC’s Michelle Jana Chan and renowned photographers Andy Rouse, Steve Bloom, Jason Hawkes, Martin Hartley and Sue Flood.

NEW YORK, CALIFORNIA COAST, IRELAND, PARIS
Donna Dailey has recently visited New York and is writing new city tours for the AA's CityPack guide. In May she and Mike Gerrard will be travelling up the California Coast, reviewing hotels, restaurants and attractions for their website www.pacific-coast-highway-travel.com, and attending International Pow Wow in San Francisco. In June, Donna is looking to set up visits to Ireland and Paris for forthcoming articles and guidebook projects.

Contact: Donna at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

FROM THE AMAZON TO THE YANGTZE
Vivien Devlin is the editor of a forthcoming book, “Great Boat Journeys of the World,” an anthology of the best travel experiences on board small luxury cruise ships, Expedition boats, barges and yachts - inspirational, aspirational itineraries around Asia and the Americas, in Antarctica and Africa, Chile to China. Several exciting press trips have been arranged. Suggestions and offers welcome from PR and Cruise companies for more great river journeys, wildlife expeditions and seafaring adventures to highlight in this lavishly illustrated book.

Contact: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it ; Tel: 0131 343 2116

MY ITALY
Valery Collins’ first article about a ski resort, Madonna di Campiglio, was published in The Piste in December. She has completed the first draft of her third book, My Italy: Festas and Fiascos. There are so many festas in Italy from cow parades to carnivals and she has experienced and enjoyed quite a few – can’t say the same for the groups she was leading, hence the fiascos. She is now working on some more articles about Italy.

Contact: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

SETTING SAIL AGAIN
Following a busy winter of book reviews, product reviews and photographing the construction as well as the restoration of several boats, Richard Johnstone-Bryden is gearing up for another summer of regattas, boat reviews, charter guides and cruising guides. Richard will be focusing mainly on the East Coast and the Norfolk Broads along with a visit to the Mediterranean in the autumn.

For nautical features or photos contact This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it ; Tel: 01603 471223

COASTAL SUFFOLK TO CENTRAL ASIA
Laurence Mitchell has recently updated Bradt’s Georgia guide and written a guide to long-distance walks in Suffolk for Cicerone (to be published in November). He is currently writing about the Norfolk Broads, Georgia, Ukraine, Bangladesh and Suffolk for publications as varied as Heritage, Russian Life and Serendib (Sri Lankan Airlines). In May he revisits Kyrgyzstan to update his own Bradt guide and would be happy to discuss commissions on this destination or any of the above.

Contact: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it ; 01603 614619; www.laurencemitchell.com

STRICTLY COME TANGOING…
Peter Ellegard will be sharpening his dance steps, wine-tasting and playing golf when he visits Argentina in April. May sees him return to California for Pow Wow in San Francisco, after driving the beautiful Highway 1 coastal route from Los Angeles. In January, Peter was a speaker at the prestigious ONE Travel Conference in Pasadena and was named Travel Journalist of the Year in the 2011 SASI-ONE Awards, organised by the US Cultural & Heritage Tourism Marketing Council and Shop America Alliance, for his writing and photography about US cultural tourism.

Contact: Peter Ellegard This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

SLOW COTSWOLDS
Published in April 2011 is Slow Cotswolds, the latest guidebook in the series on Slow tourism from Bradt Travel Guides. Cotswolds-based author Caroline Mills has focused on what makes the area so distinctive by looking through the eyes of those who live and work there. Interviews with local people, car-free travel, special places to stay, eat, drink and visit, as well as lesser-known locations of special significance to the author are covered. Spin-off features welcomed.

Contact Caroline at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it ; Tel: 01295 722172; www.carolinemills.net

FROM SARDINIA'S BEACHES TO THE SWISS ALPS
Fresh back from assignments in Austria, France, Berlin and the Algarve, Kerry Christiani is now preparing for Sardinia. As the author of the Lonely Planet guide, she will be visiting the island this spring in search of hidden coves, little-known mountain trails and the perfect pecorino. This summer Kerry will be dividing her time between home (the Black Forest), Mallorca and the Swiss Alps.

Contact: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it ; Tel: +49 (0)7721 2064 288

CARRY ON QUEENSLAND!
18 April-23 May Sasha Heseltine is spending five weeks in Queensland and Adelaide and is chasing UK print commissions on: - A road trip through Queensland, exploring north of Cairns in the rainforest, as well as Sunshine and Gold coasts. What Queensland offers from accommodation to natural phenomena; a close look at the effect of the floods and Yasi on the region, putting a positive slant on the issues. Best of Adelaide and surrounds, Clare Valley Gourmet Weekend.

Contact: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it ; Tel: +44 (0)7951038895; @sashaheseltine

LA TO ITALY
Wrapping up three months in sometimes sunny California, Carolyn Lyons is back in London early April then on to her second (third?) base in Umbria, Italy. Researched some unique angles on LA from space flight to robber barons to Civil War graves and collected Euro-commissions from California media. Now on to tend her olive grove and brush up her expertise on Naples, Florence and all things Italian.

Contact: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

NEW MEMBERS

Charlotte Metcalf
A producer in the past of award-winning documentaries for the BBC, Channel 4 and CNN, Londoner Charlotte has focused on Africa (as well as travelling with a small child) since her book Africa, Walking Away was published a few years ago. She is a frequent contributor to The Spectator, Daily Mail and The Lady.

Contact: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

Duncan J D Smith
Although he has a Sheffield address, Duncan spends much of his time in Vienna where he has produced a series of English and German language Only In Guides on such cities as Vienna, Budapest and Hamburg. He also has written for Condé Nast Traveller and has a photo library spanning three continents.

Contact: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it ; www.duncanjdsmith.com

Ben West
Multi-facetted Londoner Ben has been a guidebook writer (most recently as the sole author of Bradt's third edition on the Cameroon), playwright and a contributor on travel and other subjects to such newspapers as The Daily Mail, The Independent, The Sunday Mirror and the Glasgow Herald. His specialist subjects range from Cameroon and North Cyprus to Amsterdam, Antwerp and health travel.

Contact: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

Members News is published quarterly by the British Guild of Travel Writers and is edited by Peter Lynch. We'd like to hear from you and find out what you think about our newsletter. Send any suggestions or comments you may wish to make to the editor on email: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

© The British Guild of Travel Writers, April 2011